


"Just Come Back."

by sarcasticism



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon, M/M, anyways back to tags, as in a simon romance instead of a north romance, hank was right to call perkins a prick, literally i just took markus' story from dbh and made it gay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-23
Updated: 2018-08-23
Packaged: 2019-07-01 10:26:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15772248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarcasticism/pseuds/sarcasticism
Summary: What if Markus ended up with Simon instead of North?





	"Just Come Back."

**Author's Note:**

> Look the quote in the title is arguably _the _gayest thing that made it into the final game.__  
>  __  
>  _This is legitimately all I do, I just rewrite canon and _make it gay _. Most of the dialogue is from the game itself, so obviously everything belongs to Quantic Dream and David Cage___  
> 

Markus could always put on a brave face for his followers, but even the greatest leaders needed to be alone sometimes. So much had happened since he escaped the junkyard. Finding Jericho, sending a message to the humans, freeing his people from the CyberLife stores, and transforming Capitol Park was a lot to process. The public was sympathetic to their cause, but Markus couldn’t stop thinking about Simon. It had been so hard to leave him there, but he couldn’t kill one of his own. So he gave Simon his gun and abandoned him.

Markus was standing on a wooden plank that stretched past the rooftop. It probably wasn’t the safest place, but the existential view helped him think.

“I was wondering where you were.” North.

“I needed to think.”

“I like it here. I come here often.” Markus turned to face her. “It’s like being alone with the world.”

“We freed hundreds of our people, and they’re still coming from all over the city. Those who dream of freedom come to Jericho...” North continued.

 _Freedom?_ Markus thought. _Hiding from humans and waiting to shut down is_ not _freedom._ North continued.

“Something’s changing… You seem preoccupied.”

“They all obey me, they follow me without question… and that much power feels good… and scary at the same time,” Markus admitted.

“All the media are talking about what we did last night. The humans are terrified. They’re afraid of a civil war. Many of our people were burned in response to what happened. The humans hate us. They’ll never give us our freedom.”

“No, not all humans are the same. Some of them understand that they can’t stop us from becoming free forever.”

“You haven’t said much about yourself since you’ve been with us. What was your life like before Jericho?” North inquired.

“I was caring for an old man. He was like a father to me. He showed me that humans and androids can live together.”

 _Carl._ Markus thought about that night all the time; what he should have done, what would have happened if he’d endured Leo’s taunts like Carl wanted him to, what would have happened if the police hadn’t shot him. If he’d done anything else, maybe he’d still be with Carl, impervious to all the negativity outside his walls. But Carl wouldn’t want Markus to become complacent. He would encourage Markus to do what he knew was right. Markus knew what he had to do.

North was looking at him, seemingly waiting for him to speak, but Markus was done talking. He hoped he hadn’t hurt her feelings, but he’d already wasted too much of his time wallowing in apprehension.

When Markus arrived back at the freighter, someone walked out to meet him. Markus almost started running diagnostics on his optical units. He stared at Simon, making a note of his new leg, and Simon stared back with a little smile. Markus approached slowly, scanning his friend to ensure his authenticity.

Simon wasn’t a glitch in his software. He was back in Jericho, back with Markus, _safe_. Overwhelmed with relief, Markus pulled Simon into a hug. There was something comforting about holding someone close to you. Markus was beginning to understand why humans cuddled.

 

“We came here to demonstrate peacefully,” Markus told the riot unit, “and tell humans that we are living beings. All we want is to live free.”

“This is an illegal gathering. Disperse immediately or we will open fire,” the commander responded.

“We’re not looking for confrontation. We’ve done no harm, we have no intention of doing any… but know that we are not going anywhere until we have secured our freedom.”

“I repeat, this is an illegal gathering. If you do not disperse immediately, we will shoot.”

“Markus, they’re gonna kill us. We have to attack. There’s more of us, we can take them,” North suggested.

“If we attack, we’ll start a war. We have to show them we’re not violent. We should just stand our ground, even if it means dying here.”

“And dying here won’t solve anything,” Simon interjected. “Markus, we need to go, now, before it’s too late.”

“This is your last chance. Disperse immediately, or you will all be killed!”

“We have to show them we won’t back down. We stay right here,” Markus declared. He stared at the riot unit defiantly as they shot into the crowd.

“DISPERSE! THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE!”

“We have to make a statement. We have to stay put, no matter what,” Josh urged.

“Please Markus, we can’t let them slaughter us without fighting back,” North pleaded.

“We’re not moving,” Markus insisted. A bullet grazed his left arm as more androids fell behind him.

“Markus! What are you doing? They’re gonna kill us all!” North exclaimed.

Markus walked towards the riot team, determined not to give up. And when he was shot in the chest, Simon swore he felt it, even if androids didn’t have pain receptors. Markus fell. Simon was about to run to him, to fight the cops so Markus could get away, but someone else got there first.

“John?” Markus muttered. The android he’d converted back at the CyberLife docks. Someone was dragging Markus away as he helplessly watched John die.

“Quick! They’re coming!” Simon cried, pulling Markus to his feet. Markus was leaning on Simon for support as they retreated.

“You’ll be okay, Markus, you’ll be okay,” Simon said.

“North, Josh, run ahead and make sure as many people made it back as possible,” Markus commanded.

“On it!” North and Josh were soon out of sight.

As soon as they made it back onto the freighter, Simon and Markus fell to their knees, breathing heavily. Simon’s grip on Markus tightened, despite Markus no longer needing the extra support. Simon was shaking.

“We’re safe now,” Markus whispered, holding Simon close. Markus held him until he calmed down.

 

“We’re short on blue blood and biocomponents. Our wounded are shutting down and there’s nothing we can do,” Josh said.

“President Warren is saying we’re a threat to national security and we need to be exterminated,” Simon added.

“Humans are conducting raids in all the big cities and they’re taking androids to camps to destroy them!” North divulged.

“It’s a disaster. They’re slaughtering our people!” Simon sounded very agitated.

“It’s all our fault. None of this would have happened if we’d just stayed quiet,” Josh said.

“All we did was show them who we are… I don’t want war, but I’d rather die free than live as a slave,” Markus interjected.

“What’s the point of being free if no one is left alive?” Josh asked.

“Humans enslaved us! I’ll never regret standing up to that.”

“We shouldn’t forget who our enemies are. We can’t fight amongst ourselves,” Simon reminded them.

“He’s right. All that matters now is what we do next. Markus?” North looked at him expectantly.

“Dialogue. It’s the only way. I will go alone and try to talk to them one last time.”

“Don’t do this Markus. They’ll kill you,” North begged.

“Maybe… but North, I have to try. If I don’t come back, lay low as long as you can.”

North walked towards Markus and patted him on the shoulder. “Just come back,” she requested.

“They need to realize how much they’re hurting us. Find the right words, and they’ll listen,” Josh advised.

Josh walked away, leaving Markus and Simon alone.

“They can’t stop what we’ve started. Since you’ve been here, you’ve given us hope… You’ve given me hope,” Simon admitted. “Whatever happens tomorrow, I just want you to know that I… I’m glad I met you.

Simon put a hand on Markus’ shoulder, letting it linger a little too long for platonic boundaries. Markus started leaning forward, overwhelmed with the strong desire to be closer to Simon, to kiss him and hold his hand, even though he could barely conceptualize romantic gestures.

But before Markus could kiss him, Simon dropped his hand from his shoulder and stepped back. “I should go join the others,” he said, leaving Markus alone.

Before he even had any time to think through everything that just happened, Connor entered, gun drawn. Markus raised his hands.

 

He was lucky to escape Jericho alive. Not to mention the fact that he’d been able to convince Connor to become a deviant. If Connor hadn’t fought the humans alongside him, they probably would have had to leave some people behind.

He took a look around. The abandoned church would work as a temporary base. Markus didn’t need to think about it too much. From the Jericho attack, it was pretty clear that the humans were not willing to sit idly by anymore… but neither were the androids. They had to make one last stand, one final gesture, and maybe that would sway the government over to their side. Either way, it would all be over soon.

Markus sat down next to Simon, who almost immediately stood up and started pacing.

“Our people are counting on you, Markus. You’re the only one who can lead us. Wherever you need to go… We’ll follow you.”

Markus stood up, walked towards Simon, and took his hand.

“I don’t know how to handle whatever this is between us… but I know I have feelings for you. Even in the midst of this revolution,” Markus admitted.

“Markus, I…” Simon trailed off.

“You don’t have to say anything. I don’t know if we’ll even be alive this time tomorrow. I just… wanted you to know.”

Simon slowly reached up to cup Markus’ face and gently pull him closer. When their lips met, it didn’t any feel different than what it seemed, but the intimacy of the gesture made Markus want to kiss him forever.

Simon released him, smiled softly, and walked away. If only they weren’t in the middle of a civil war…

 

“Markus!” North called. “Markus, come look!”

Markus looked over the barricade.

“Markus!” It was that FBI agent who orchestrated the Jericho raid. Connor told him his name was Perkins. “I’ve come to talk to you, Markus!”

Markus just stared.

“Come on,” Perkins continued, “you have my word, they won’t try anything.”

“Don’t go,” North warned. “It’s a trap. They wanna get you out in the open. Don’t go, Markus.”

“I’m unarmed, Markus,” Perkins said. “I just want to talk.”

This was what Markus wanted. Maybe he could convince them to see reason. And, if he ended up betrayed, he trusted that the revolution was in good hands.

Markus turned to North. “I need to hear what he has to say.”

“What if they kill you?” she countered.

“That’s a chance I’ll have to take.”

Markus jumped off the barricade and walked towards Perkins, keeping an eye on the soldiers behind him.

“In a few minutes,” Perkins began, “the troops will be ordered to charge. None of you will survive. It will all be over. But you can avoid that, Markus.”

“What do you mean?” Markus asked.

“Surrender.” He paused for a moment. “Surrender and I give you my word your life will be spared. They’ll be detained, but none of you will be destroyed.”

“What happened to the other androids demonstrating in the camps?”

“Unfortunately, there were no journalists around to help save them. You’re it. You’re the last remaining deviants.”

_No._

“If I accept your offer, how do I know you’ll keep your word?”

“You’re not in any position to be demanding guarantees, Markus. All you can do right now is decide whether you want to trust me or not.”

“I’m not afraid to die. If I have to give my life for what I believe in, then I won’t have lived in vain.”

“That android… you seem to, really, care about him. You don’t want him to die, do you?”

 _Simon._  Markus averted his gaze.

“You know, you could both be free. You could forget about all this, you could…start a new life someplace else, just the two of you… His life is in your hands, Markus. Just say the word and he’ll be spared.”

 _No. This_ has _to be a trick. They’ll never let us live in peace._

“I’d rather die here than betray my people.”

“Well, you just signed your own death warrant.”

Markus returned to his people and Perkins returned to his.

 

They were surrounded, backs up against the wall. Markus looked over at Simon. If he was to die here, he wouldn’t go without showing the world how he truly felt. He walked towards Simon slowly, so as not to alarm the military into shooting him.

Markus wrapped his arms around Simon’s waist and kissed him. When they broke apart, Simon took Markus’ hand and they turned to face their deaths… but no gunshots sounded. Markus watched in awe as the army lowered their weapons.

The androids won that day.


End file.
